Blossom
by blackandwhity
Summary: A collection of Tiva family drabbles.
1. Annunciation

**A/N** _Hello everyone! While I try to work out a multichapter that I've been struggling with for months, here are some drabbles I had published only on Tumblr. There will be just some minor changes to make them somewhat consistent, since they were conceived as self contained, and not to be part of a whole.  
Major fluff warning. Enjoy!_

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_December 2014_

Christmas Eve was at the DiNozzo's this year.  
They ate, they drank, they listened to Ducky's stories, they laughed, they sang 'til midnight while Tony played the piano to accompany the little, but enthusiastic, choir.

It was when silence settled again and it was just the two of them, that she put a little book of scores on the music stand.

And after all the joys of a night spent with their family, it was his amazed reaction in front of a simple book of lullabies that warmed her heart the most.

Switching from jazz to classical would be the first swing in his new life as a father.


	2. Apparition

**_A/N_**_ I apologize in advance for the sour note: a story set in the future and narrated at past tense doesn't sound well, I know.  
__Please keep in mind that these stories were written some time ago, with no particular setting. I felt it wasn't right to set the whole thing in 2013/14 just to make timing fit, because the progression from canon to this future au would feel rushed. I hope you can forgive this little sin and enjoy the story anyway!_

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_May 2015_

Tony DiNozzo admired the sight before his eyes with a lustful look. Seeing Ziva in one of his shirts wasn't completely new, but a pregnant Ziva in a shirt that used to be one of his favorites made certainly an effect.

"I thought I had put that one into the donation box." He teased, and licked a corner of his mouth.

She glanced casually at the garment she was wearing, feigning surprise.

"You had?"

"I had and you were there to see me. " He chuckled, getting closer to her and rolling her left sleeve at the same height as the right one.

"I may have decided to save it." She finally admitted.

"When?"

"About… a couple of seconds after you had discarded it."

"You sneaky ninja." He smirked and encircled her waist in his arms. "You could have just said you wanted to keep it."

She raised her eyebrows in disbelief. "Oh come on, Tony, you were full-on into fitness freak mode and very determined to get rid of all your… chubby wardrobe."

"Hey! It's a way to keep the motivation high… and I wasn't chubby, I was merely soft."

"And I liked your soft version."

She kissed him to let the concept sink in. She was glad that he was taking care of his health and trying to stay fit, but she had sensed an element of self-consciousness in his motivation to lose weight, and sometimes she felt the need to remind him that she found him hot and loved him no matter what.

"As I liked this shirt… you wore it that time we made out like a teenagers on a bench along the Potomac, and that time you brought me to that beautiful jazz concert – "

"Yeah well…", he kissed her cheek, "… you also ripped it off me after that same concert…", he kissed her jaw under her ear, "… and after telling Gibbs about us…", he kissed her neck, "… after that date at the theater… we had actually watched the movie…"

He started unbuttoning her shirt, _his _shirt, and wondered how on earth had he considered giving it away. Sure, it was too big for him in his new shape, but holy heavens, it looked hot on his wife. And being on the other side of the ripping it off was definitely arousing.

She moaned as he kissed his way down at each unhooked button and slid her hands through his hair. By the time he set free the last button she was panting and shivering, so she took him by the hand and led him to the bedroom. Their Sunday morning had just had a change of plans.


	3. Serenade

_July 2015_

He heard the first faint notes while he was still on the last flight of stairs. It was a good thing, he mused, that their neighbors down the landing were away for the weekend. He doubted they would have appreciated her playing so late at night if they had been at home.

On the other side of the door, the melody became discernible and spread a warm, happy feeling in his chest. He reached her as quietly as he could, hoping she wouldn't stop playing, but she had already sensed his presence and was greeting him with a sleepy smile.

"Hey", he breathed, before meeting her lips. "You did not have to wait me up."

"I have not seen you today, I missed you." She answered, kissing him again. "Besides, someone decided to throw a party." She added, feigning annoyance, but her affectionate smile gave away that she was not bothered at all by their unborn baby predilection for overnight activities.

"I'm sorry I left without saying hi this morning, but you were sleeping so well… and mom needed to catch up with her sleep, right party-bear?" He added, stroking her belly lightly.

"Party-bear, Tony?" She hit him off, frowning. He was creating a new nickname every day, and they were getting more and more absurd. It was half amusing, half exasperating.

He didn't even hear her, though, he was too focused on the movements he felt under his hands. She looked at his awestruck expression and realized that it was the same one she saw the first time he had been able to feel his daughter give a kick. It was incredible, she mused, that he was still so thrilled after having experienced that same thing for three months. And then she remembered that she felt exactly the same way.

After giving him a moment, she put her hands on his and invited him to get up, since he was crouched beside the piano bench since his arrival.

"Go to sleep, Tony, you're exhausted."

"You're not coming?"

"You just felt her, I would not be able to sleep anyway."

He seemed pensive for a moment, and then, struck by a sudden idea, he said, "Schooch over."

She complied, curious, and they squeezed together on the bench.

"What did you play to her?"

"The usual, her favorites from the lullabies book. Tonight nothing works, no Brahms, no Mozart –", she answered, now a little exasperated, because she had played for an hour straight all the pieces that normally helped calm her baby down, all in vain.

"Maybe she's up for something different tonight."

He winked, and started playing and crooning "I'm glad there is you", earning a big smile and a kiss on his neck. Within seconds, they were both lost into the sweet memory linked to that song.  
He kept playing, touching a few of his favorite Sinatra classics, until he felt her head on his shoulder become heavier.

"Hey ninjas, let's get you into bed now, okay?"

She made a sound that was half a chuckle, half a moan, because after all the pun still had that effect on her. Then she took the hand he was theatrically offering her and they left the room arm in arm, looking like the end scene of a black and white movie… or at least, that was Tony's last thought before falling asleep with his girls in his arms.


	4. 42nd Street

_December 2015_

They were smack in the middle of moving.  
Countless boxes had been randomly stacked by the house movers, and the majority of the labels Ziva had neatly written on each box were not visible. Tony's yells in the next room mixed with her daughter's cries right in her ears while she tried to calm her down.  
He had been digging through the piles for almost an hour, in quest of Althea's favorite blanket. Their four months old baby hadn't stopped crying once since they had entered the new apartment, not even after being fed and changed. She was just tired and nervous, just like her parents. Relocations tend to have this effect on people.

Tony had finally found all the boxes labeled 'nursery', but apparently he wasn't having much luck.

"It's the fourth box I open, _the fourth!_, and there's anything but Althea's stuff in here".

The last two hours before the arrival of the house movers had been frantic, and they had started putting all the small things that were still around in random boxes, wherever they had found some free space.  
According to Tony, the infamous fourth box contained a remote control, an alarm clock, some placemats, a rubber duck, Althea's snowsuit ("So we did put some actual baby stuff in here!"), headphones, the kitchen's wall clock, a folder with random documents and…  
He started yelling even louder because the folder had opened and papers were flying everywhere, and then he just stopped.

The sudden silence, or relative silence, since Althea was still whimpering in her arms, surprised Ziva. She was expecting him to go on forever with his tirade, so she zigzagged through the maze of boxes to check on him. He was sitting on the ground all cramped among the boxes and a few items he had gotten out of them and was holding a small, square piece of paper. He looked at her standing in the doorframe and answered her unspoken question turning the paper around with a smile that was half wistful, half affectionate.  
It was the old picture of him and his mother in front of her favorite theater. A few months earlier the frame that contained it had fallen and gone to pieces, and shortly after that, the picture had disappeared.

Althea probably sensed that her parents had suddenly calmed down and forgotten all the stress, the tiredness and the tension of that long day that was still far from over, and were just smiling at each other in surprise, because she chose that exact moment to stop whimpering and started chewing her tiny fingers instead.  
Tony stood up, carefully climbed over the mess that separated him from his wife and daughter, and when he reached them he kissed them both, feeling suddenly content.

"We need a break" whispered Ziva, caressing his hair, ear, and jaw lightly.

He breathed a "Yeah" while he rested his forehead on hers, just savoring the much needed moment of calm and comfort.

She suddenly broke the silence. "You know, I've seen a little theater three blocks from here."

He pulled away to look at her in complete awe. "Did you really just suggest…?"

"Why not?"

"Have you looked around in the last couple of hours?" he laughed.

"I have. And I don't expect to get rid of this mess today, or tomorrow, for that matter. It's going to take days anyway. We'll be back in two hours, and I'm sure we'll be more productive then then we could ever be now." She tilted her head and flashed a knowing smile.

His kiss was a clear enough answer.

"What about Althea?" he asked, having a second thought.

"She's calmed down, and I'm sure she'll fall asleep once we get there. Have you ever seen her awake after the first five minutes of our movie nights?"

He lifted his index finger to tell her that she had made her point, and grabbed the aforementioned baby snowsuit.

Half an hour later they were standing in front of the lovely little theater that Ziva was talking about. It looked cozy and old-fashioned, just like the one Tony used to go to with his mother.  
He held his daughter a little bit tighter and kissed her head, because the moment held a high symbolism for the two of them. Even if she was too little to understand, even if she was going to sleep on his chest through the whole movie, he wanted to consecrate it.  
Then, with his free arm, he pulled Ziva to him, and held her close while he kissed her, trying to convey all the love and gratitude he felt, and trying to let her know how much it meant to him that she understood him so well.  
In the end, it still didn't feel enough, so he looked her in the eyes and murmured "Thank you".  
She just smiled and kissed him quickly, before taking his hand and letting the three of them in for their first cinema experience as a family.

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**A/N**_ This was my first baby fic and it's the last of this little collection._ _It doesn't mean it's over_,_ of course. When I'll come up with more family stories I'll publish them here.  
Meanwhile, if you have liked these drabbles and are looking for more, there is one more family fic I've already published on this site, "Her mother's daughter". _

_Thank you for reading, and a special thanks to those who followed, favorited and to the guests who let a review. I always appreciate it!_


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